BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) - An attorney says a warrant has been issued for the arrest of a con artist who attempted to take over a Montana jail, after the man failed to show up for a court hearing in California.

Michael Hilton is the lead figure of American Police Force, a Santa Ana, Calif.-company that tried unsuccessfully to take over a 464-bed jail in Hardin.

Hilton had been ordered to appear before a Los Angeles superior court judge on Thursday in a separate case, a 2000 civil fraud lawsuit. One of the plaintiffs in that case, Richard Earnhart of Riverside, Calif., has a judgment against Hilton estimated at $700,000.

Earnhart's attorney, Cris Armenta, says Superior Court Judge Andrew Kauffman issued a bench warrant for Hilton's arrest after he failed to appear.

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